DO: Feed lots of high-quality forage.

Since horses originated in the wild as grazing animals, they do best when eating a diet of mostly forage (hay and/or pasture). Grain is a modern invention—a form of concentrated calories fed to horses that do a lot of exercise, or hard keepers that need help putting weight on.

Horses need to eat a minimum of 1.5 percent of their body weight in forage (dry weight) per day, which equates to 15 pounds for the average 1,000-pound horse. A great investment is a scale to weigh your portions. Put the hay in a hay net and hang it from a fish or luggage scale. Horses that need more hay can be fed free-choice (unlimited), which equates to up to approximately 2.5 percent of their body weight per day.

Lush pasture grass is very high in calories and will often pack the pounds on faster than hay will. Limit grazing time if your horse becomes overweight, and opt for feeding hay instead.

DON’T: Feed poor-quality hay.

Most horses eat more hay than pasture, so be vigilant about hay quality. Hay should be free of weeds, debris, mold or any musty smell. It doesn’t necessarily have to be bright green in color, but hay should smell fresh and be more soft than stemmy.

Hay contaminated with dead mammals can cause botulism, which is more likely to happen when making round bales. Always vaccinate your horse for botulism if you feed round bales, and only buy those that were stored under cover. Round bales made for cattle are usually too poor quality for horses.

Be particularly picky about mold in your hay. Reject the entire load if you examine some bales and find obvious black or brown mold, or smell a musty scent. Mold particles will damage your horse’s airway and cause respiratory disease that can permanently affect his breathing.

If you feed alfalfa hay, check for leaf shatter before buying. If the leaves shatter too easily, you’ll be losing a great deal of the hay’s nutrition before your horse is able to eat it. Also be on the lookout for blister beetles that feed on alfalfa. They release a toxin called cantharadin, and even small particles of these beetles contain enough toxin to make a horse quite sick.

DO: Be prepared for a hay shortage.

Many areas of the country are frequently, but not predictably, hit with drought years. This drives up the cost of hay when it has to be brought in from farther away, or makes it impossible to find altogether.

As long as it is baled and stored properly, hay that was harvested at a later maturity or has sat in storage for up to a year can still be fine to feed, particularly when options are limited. Some horses may find mature hay unpalatable, however, and refuse to eat it. Older bales that are free of excessive dust are usually fine once opened, even though the outside may be bleached in color, indicating vitamin loss.

Be prepared ahead of time by buying as much hay as you can store at a time (up to a year’s worth), and know your alternatives. Ask your feed store about bagged hay cubes or other “hay stretchers,” such as complete feeds, to make your remaining hay go as far as possible. Use feeders or hay nets over rubber mats to prevent waste and trampling.

DON’T: Allow easy keepers too much pasture.

Although horses are naturally grazing animals, farm pasture grasses are usually improved nutritionally to provide extra calories. The starches, sugars and fructan in grass can lead to crippling laminitis, a painful inflammation in the hooves, if eaten in excess.

Horses that gain weight easily — often called easy keepers — are most at risk for pasture-related laminitis. Signs that the pasture may be storing extra starch, sugar and fructan (instead of putting them toward plant growth) include any time it is sunny but the temperatures go below 40 degrees Fahrenheit, and when the grass is stressed by drought or overgrazing.

DO: Manage your pastures carefully.

It may be tempting to look at the abundance of spring grass and add more horses to your pasture, but that’s usually not a good idea. Depending on how arid your region is, you may need 1 to 10 acres per horse for adequate full-time grazing.

To minimize bare spots that will get colonized by weeds, pastures need to be rested. Ideally, you should have two or more fields to rotate your horses between. It’s not necessary to spend lots of money on fencing; for interior pasture separation, you can use step-in T-posts and electric tape with a solar charger. Always use a solid perimeter fence for safety.

If your pasture has been overcrowded and grazed down or has suffered from a drought, it’s best to re-seed and wait six to 12 months before returning horses to the field. Weeds should be managed with mowing or an herbicide; follow directions for keeping livestock off the pasture until it’s safe for grazing.

DON’T: Forget the exercise.

A fit horse, like a fit human, will have greater muscle mass and bone density. For a horse with minor arthritis, low-intensity movement can help alleviate aches and pains and keep him feeling better. For overweight horses, an exercise program is absolutely essential for health and shedding pounds.

DO: Feed a balanced diet.

Since hay alone may not provide your horse with enough calories, many horse owners supplement the diet with grain. If your horse needs grain for extra calories, you should use a commercially formulated horse feed. These will be nutritionally balanced to meet the vitamin and mineral requirements of horses, unlike a straight grain (corn, oats, barley, et cetera).

DON’T: Overfeed your horse.

It is helpful to learn about body condition scoring so you can keep your horse from becoming obese and suffering from related health problems. Some ponies and certain horse breeds are very easy keepers and do not need to eat grain. Fortunately, ration balancers are made by most commercial feed companies that contain all the vitamins and minerals a horse needs without all the calories found in grain. Talk to someone knowledgeable at your feed store to help you select a ration balancer.

Additionally, always keep your feed room/grain bin locked up so that your horse can’t break in and gorge on feed. This happens more than you might think, and can lead to a life-threatening bout of laminitis.

DO: Feed concentrated calories if your horse needs them.

On the other end of the scale are hard keepers, often Thoroughbreds or Thoroughbred crosses. This type of horse requires a higher calorie intake to stay at a healthy weight. If your horse is already eating unlimited high-quality hay and a maximum amount of grain (no more than 5 pounds per meal in order to prevent digestive upset), you can add fat to his feed to supplement calories.

Vegetable oil is the most inexpensive form of supplementary fat, and most horses prefer the taste of corn oil above all others. Start off by adding just a couple of tablespoons to each grain meal, working upward over a span of two weeks to a maximum of 1 cup of oil twice a day. It takes time for a horse’s body to learn to metabolize fat and get used to the taste, since it’s not naturally found in large quantities in the equine diet. After acclimating, he may be fine with eating these quantities.

For picky eaters, or if you want to incorporate a fat source with more omega-3 fatty acids (corn oil is mainly omega-6 fatty acids), you can purchase a powdered equine fat supplement at the feed store that may be more palatable. These are formulated to help put weight on and be tasty, and often contain rice bran.

DON’T: Ignore your horse’s specific needs.

If your horse is a senior citizen or has a health condition such as insulin resistance, he will probably need a more specialized diet. Talk to your vet about his individual needs.

If a senior is missing teeth, he may need to eat soaked hay cubes or senior feed in order to ingest enough forage and/or calories in his diet. Beet pulp is another highly digestible source of calories from fiber, although plain beet pulp is not a balanced feed and should not make up more than 25 percent of the diet. Always soak it in plenty of water for at least one hour before feeding to prevent choke. If you have any left over, it should be fed within the day so that it doesn’t begin to ferment.

DO: Be aware of special concerns for youngsters.

Young horses have special nutritional needs. If you have a young horse that’s still growing, he will have slightly higher protein and calcium needs than an adult horse. The calcium/phosphorus and other mineral ratios in the diet are particularly important at this time, so you should talk to your equine veterinarian, a nutritionist at a feed company, or an equine extension agent to see if the diet you’re feeding is appropriate. Feeding concentrates (grain) made specifically for young, growing horses will take into account these particular needs.

You should also avoid raising an overweight/obese youngster, as joint strain at this age can cause permanent damage. Use your body condition scoring chart often to make sure he stays in the middle of the BCS range.

DON’T: Oversupplement.

If you’ve spent any amount of time in a feed store, you’ve probably noticed the numerous equine oral supplements on the market. The variety can be dizzying.

Supplements exist to address specific health issues from digestion to respiratory health. If your vet recommends trying a joint supplement for an arthritic horse, for example, try it out and see if you notice a difference after six weeks. If there are additional issues you want to address with supplements, check with your vet or an equine nutritionist to make sure your horse’s diet stays balanced when you add your supplements.

DO: Provide free-choice salt.

A hay and grain diet usually doesn’t provide sufficient salt, particularly during hotter weather. Always keep a salt source in your horse’s field or stall; several kinds are available. If your horse will lick a regular salt block, you can choose either a white or trace-mineral (brown) type. Newer to the market are Himalayan salt licks, which can be more palatable for horses that don’t like the other solid types. A free-choice feeder for loose salt is also an option if your horse doesn’t like a block.

DON’T: Forget the water.

Many people forget that water is the No. 1 nutrient your horse needs. Horses are often sensitive to dirty water or water that’s too hot. Make sure your horse always has plenty of clean water at a good drinking temperature. When troughs freeze or buckets sit empty, there is the potential for digestive contents to dry out in his gastrointestinal tract and cause impaction colic, a very serious veterinary emergency that is easily avoided with a bit of diligence in this area.

This article about horse feeding dos and don’ts originally appeared in the 2014 edition of Your New Horse.

The post Horse Feeding Dos and Don’ts appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

We worry about our horses being too hot or too cold or exposed to sudden weather fluctuations. We stand in stores reading fly spray labels to determine which might work best and fret about whether a rain sheet, mid-weight, or heavy turnout rug is necessary, only to then worry about our horse sweating or shivering under it if we pick the wrong one.

Therefore, it’s not surprising that our overworked minds might miss something. Problems pop up like pasture weeds. Here are 10 potentially problematic horse care mistakes to keep on your radar.

1. Over-Blanketing

Opinions about blanketing horses are as fraught with emotion as those about keeping newborn babies warm. Is the baby cold? Too warm? Is the blanket too tight, too loose? When should it be removed? The decision to blanket depends primarily upon weather conditions, temperature, available shelter, and your horse’s hair coat.

If your horse lives outdoors and wears a turnout rug, it should be removed daily for grooming while his skin is checked for rubs and his overall body condition is noted. Clipped horses have their natural protection removed, and need heavier blankets than horses with natural coats. Rain sheets and mid-weights are often enough for unclipped horses, while heavy rugs and neck covers are usually needed if the horse is clipped, thin, or used to a warmer climate.

Many healthy animals with a natural coat don’t need blanketing in winter as long as they have access to shelter from wind and precipitation. Blankets should always be removed if your horse is sweating underneath. It’s easier and far worse for a horse to overheat than be uncomfortable from cold or breezy weather, so err on the side of under-blanketing instead of over-blanketing.

2. Moldy Hay

Buying hay is always a challenge and has become more so in the last decade. Small square bales have given way to large ones, and round bales are practically impossible to assess for quality.

Drought conditions have made the supply smaller, with farmers baling fewer cuttings every year. Prices are high, requiring long searches for good hay in a tough market. Too often, when hay prices get high, horse owners are tempted to lower their standards and feed bales they would typically reject. This is risky, since bad hay causes respiratory problems and can be fatal if it is contaminated with blister beetles or toxic plants.

Never mistake tight, heavy bales or a green tint for quality, as weight can indicate that the hay was baled damp and the green color can be sprayed on like a faux lawn. There’s no substitute for your eyes and nose.

Learn what good hay looks and smells like and always inspect a few bales before you purchase. Even if you board your horse, always keep a close eye on what he is eating and insist on quality hay.

3. Dusty Bedding

Dusty bedding, hay, and arena footing can trigger equine asthma, a respiratory disease that is much harder to treat than to prevent. When buying pine shavings, check the wrapper to make sure you are buying the dust-free option. The cheaper products can become very expensive if your horse ends up with a persistent cough.

Shredded newspaper is the lowest-dust bedding available, although it may not be feasible to find in all areas. Straw bedding is the highest in dust.

4. Cluttered Barn Aisles

Your barn aisle is ground zero for your horse activities. It should be de-cluttered periodically and assessed for safety.

A horse may have gone in and out of his stall without incident for years, but it only takes one mistake for a door handle to slice his flank enough to require stitches. Protruding tack hooks and slippery footing are other avoidable accidents waiting to happen.

Cross-ties should always have breakaway hardware fastened closest to the wall so if you need to unfasten it in an emergency, you aren’t as close to a panicking horse. A loop of baling twine between the hardware and the wall hook is another breakaway point that will hold everyday forces but gives in case of a panicked pull-back.

Another potential hazard is the placement of feed containers in the aisle in front of stalls. Many horses are escape artists, and nothing tempts them like available food they know is just inches away.

5. No Pre-Purchase Vet Check

Both experienced and novice horse buyers often skip a pre-purchase exam for a variety of reasons: cost, inconvenience of scheduling, not knowing a local veterinarian where the horse is located, and believing they have the skills to detect conformation flaws or signs of looming disease.

A pre-purchase exam is not a health guarantee because the vet is only examining what exists the day of the exam, but any major issues will be a red flag to a professional who treats horses on a regular basis.

Laminitis has a lingering imprint in the ridges on a horse’s hooves; a heart murmur declares its presence through a stethoscope; and lameness is often subtle and difficult to detect—all are best assessed by a veterinarian. The fee for this service is tiny compared to owning a horse that you can’t sell in good fait.

6. Contracts for Horse Sales or Lease Agreements

The era of closing a horse sale with a handshake is long gone, yet many purchase agreements today have an abysmal paper trail. We live in a world that requires documentation as protection against lawsuits and disputes between parties who can’t remember the details of the original transaction.

7. Failing to Pre-Check Your Trailer

You’ve probably been there before: You’re in such a hurry to get on the road to the horse show or late for that trail ride that you skip the checklist of pre-departure truck, hitch and trailer inspections before starting the engine.

Owning a new trailer does not preclude a safety check on door and window latches, air vents, butt bars (if you have them), tire inflation, trailer lights, hitch connections, and electric wiring. Trailer windows should be open (with grills closed) based on weather and predicted inside temperature once underway. Most of the time, the temperature inside the trailer is much hotter than outside.

8. Buying and Keeping an Unsuitable Horse

Far too many people fall in love with a horse at first sight (or photo), throw caution to the wind and buy it, only to soon discover he’s not suited to their skills or needs. Disappointed new owners may resist selling because they are already emotionally committed. This situation typically ends with the horse as a pasture pet or the owner hiring a costly trainer to fix what usually can’t be fixed—an unhappy owner paired with an unsuitable horse.

Buy a horse for what you want to do with him, not because he’s a fashionable breed or has a flashy coat. Buyers should remember the adage, “A good horse is never a bad color.”

9. Trying New Things While Your Horse is Distracted

Don’t set yourself up for failure by ignoring obvious warning signs when teaching your horse something new. Cold, windy weather is not the best time to introduce sidepassing or trail riding. Impending storms often usher in erratic behavior in horses and cause problems under saddle.

Avoid trying to train when the arena is filled with distractions like jumping ponies and galloping reiners. Your horse learns better when he can focus. Likewise, don’t expect concentration when it’s feeding time and all of the other horses are happily digging into their meal.

10. Spoiling Your Horse

Horses are like children in that they will take advantage of weak leadership, and they occasionally need correction. Failing to assert yourself as the leader of your “herd of two” usually ends in disappointment, if not injury.

If you can’t assert yourself enough to do this, your horse will step right into the role. Watch two horses turned out together and you’ll see they settle who is in charge within minutes, and every breach of that agreement will be challenged. Horse owners should never fall for the myth that horses love those who placate and spoil them. Horses respect clear leadership, not pushover love.

Every horse owner has made one of these mistakes in horse care and horsemanship, and probably asked themselves later why they didn’t listen to their inner voice telling them another day would be better to try something new. There is no need to learn a lesson the hard way!

This article about common horse care mistakes appeared in the November/December 2022 issue of Horse Illustrated magazine. Click here to subscribe!

The post 10 Common Horse Care Mistakes appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.